Stanley, Tasmania

Stanley Tasmania
Stanley and The Nut viewed from Highfield
Stanley
Coordinates	40°46′S 145°18′E / 40.767°S 145.300°E / -40.767; 145.300Coordinates: 40°46′S 145°18′E / 40.767°S 145.300°E / -40.767; 145.300
Population	481 (2011 census)
Postcode(s)	7331
Elevation	10 m (33 ft)
Location	379 km (235 mi) NW of Hobart 224 km (139 mi) W of Launceston 127 km (79 mi) W of Devonport 21 km (13 mi) NE of Smithton
LGA(s)	Circular Head Council
State electorate(s)	Braddon
Federal Division(s)	Braddon
Mean max temp Mean min temp Annual rainfall 16.1 °C 61 °F 9.4 °C 49 °F 934.7 mm 36.8 in

Stanley is a town on the north-west coast of Tasmania, Australia. Travelling west, Stanley is the second-last major township on the north-west coast of Tasmania, Smithton being the larger township in the Circular Head municipality. According to the 2011 census, Stanley had a population of 481.

In 1825 the Van Diemen's Land Company was granted land in north-western Van Diemen's Land, including the Stanley area. Employees of the company from England settled in the area in October 1826.

It was named after Lord Stanley, the British Secretary of State for War and the Colonies in the 1830s and 1840s, who later had three terms of office as British Prime Minister.

A port opened in 1827 and the first school opened in 1841. The Post Office opened on 1 July 1845; it was known as Circular Head until 1882. In 1880 the first coach service between Stanley and Burnie was established.

In 1936 a submarine telephone cable from Apollo Bay to Stanley provided the first telephone to Tasmania from the mainland.

Today Stanley is a tourist destination and the main fishing port on the north-west coast of Tasmania.

The most distinctive landmark in Stanley is The Nut, an old volcanic plug discovered by the explorers Bass and Flinders in 1798, who named it Circular Head. It has steep sides and rises to 143 metres with a flat top. It is possible to walk to the top of The Nut via a steep track or via a chairlift.

Tourists regularly travel to Highfield (a farming region on the north west of the township) to view the picturesque northern beaches with The Nut in the background.